Transcript

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>> A deadly fire in the Philippines has thrust an American outsourcing company into the spotlight. 37 workers killed at a call center in Devao City when a blaze broke out in the mall below, just days before the Christmas holiday. Now authorities have shut down the offices of Research Now, SSI.

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Saying the US firm failed to meet safety standards for five years in a row. Reuters' Neil Jerome Morales visited the site of the accident.>> The whole center agents were not aware of the big fire happening at the mall until it was far too late, with smoke already blocking the emergency exits, and already engulfing the whole center.

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Some avenues have precious time to grab their things out the locker room, according to investigators. Investigations by a joint task force pointed out to several violations, among these were sprinkler systems that were not functioning. Fire exits that were easy to block by smoke. And the alarm system of the mall and outsourcing firm was not interconnected.

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>> SSI is one of many global outsourcing firms that have flocked to the Philippines in recent years, part of a $23 billion industry that employs more than a million people.>> The Philippines wants to attract foreign investments, at times offering lead ways for compliance and leniency to big investors.

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Rules were crafted to be stringent, but implementation is another matter altogether.>> President Rodrigo Duterte is credited with boosting Devo's economy by luring outsourcing firms during his time as mayor there. He has promised the victim's families that the truth will come out.